Ditch the to-do list in favour of a done list, go for a power walk and don’t worry about bad dreams. Simon Usborne asks the experts for small steps to improve your life.
1. Don’t fret about lost sleep
A full night without waking is not the norm, and that’s OK. “Waking at night need not mean the end of sleep,” says Russell Foster, a professor of circadian neuroscience at Oxford University. “Some find it useful to leave the bed, keep the lights low and engage in a relaxing activity before returning when sleepy again.”
2. Be yourself
It’s the biggest cliché in self-help, but how many of us do it? “Dare to be vulnerable enough to be all of yourself for most of the time,” the psychotherapist Philippa Perry says. “I doubt you are as bad/boring/belligerent as you believe.”
3. Get a dose of nature
Jared Hanley, the co-founder of NatureQuant, an app that uses GPS to track users’ exposure to green spaces, recommends a daily nature dose of 20 minutes or more. “Research has shown that stress hormones dip 20 minutes into a walk,” he says.
4. Stop “phubbing”
“Snubbing people by checking phones while talking makes all our interactions poorer,” says Tanya Goodin, the author of My Brain Has Too Many Tabs Open. “Next time you’re chatting with someone, make your phone invisible so you’re fully present.” And how many parents freaking out over smartphone use sit scrolling away in front of their kids?
5. Walk uphill
“Walking is better than nothing, but walking uphill is a superior cardio workout while limiting the impact on the joints,” says Alexei Sharp, a former British champion decathlete and co-owner of FitFor in southeast London. Hills, stairs and treadmills with an incline function all do the trick (but go easy at first). To level up, try walking backwards.
6. Don’t insist on being right
“You can be right or you can be in a relationship,” Perry warns. “Some relationships have a tendency to tumble into a drawn-out war of one-upmanship. It’s not a great game, so don’t play it.”
7. Keep a done list
“We’re chronically prone to focusing on all the things that have yet to be done — but that list’s effectively infinite, so it rarely leads to feeling good about yourself,” says Oliver Burkeman, the author of Meditations for Mortals. “Instead, keep a list of everything you accomplish during the day, even the smallest items.” It’s reassuring, but also acts as a spur to further productivity.
8. Dare to let things be easy
We associate the value of our actions with the difficulty or effort they involve. “So it can, ironically, be scary to ask of any undertaking you’re approaching, ‘What if this were easy?’ ” Burkeman says. “This mindset shift has a way of actually making things easier — or allowing us to approach hard tasks with more ease.”
9. Be generous
Act on these impulses when they arise — you’re more likely to do something. “Thinking of writing a note of appreciation or donating to a charity? The trick is learning to do it,” Burkeman says.
10. Get plyometric
Once the preserve of elite athletes, “plyos” — aka “jump training” exercises — are beloved of physios and PTs. There are various kinds, including squat, box and side-to-side jumps, all involving explosive leaps to increase power and bone health. Adding an irregular pattern to these movements will also help co-ordination and balance, according to Sharp, the former decathlete.
11. Book an eye test
The NHS recommends one every two years. “Tests can pick up things you don’t know you’ve got, including glaucoma and diabetes, which can cause tiny haemorrhages years before other symptoms show,” says Dilani Siriwardena, a consultant ophthalmologist at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London.
12. Get sprinting
“I’m forever trying to convince hapless shufflers to try some sprinting,” Sharp says. “It’s a great way to enhance musculature, burn fat and give a glorious boost of those great, hard-to-reach hormones. Adding speed will also get your 5km time down.”
13. Monitor your VO2 max
You used to need a laboratory to measure the maximum rate at which you consume oxygen during exercise. Now simple treadmill tests and even smartphone health apps can estimate your VO2 max, the gold standard fitness metric. “It’s also the best predictor of mortality,” says Stephen Harridge, professor of human and applied physiology at King’s College London and an expert in ageing. “You can improve it by exercising and making yourself fitter, but also just by losing weight.”
14. Love your feet
Victoria Fresneda Gomez, principal podiatrist at the beauty brand Margaret Dabbs London, says a two-minute foot stretch at least once a day will improve circulation and general foot health. “Start with slow up-and-down movements stretching your toes toward your shin and then towards the floor,” she suggests. “Also rotate your ankles in both directions and stand on the tips of your toes for five to ten seconds.”
15. Bathe before bed
Warming the hands and feet can boost sleep, says Foster, the professor of circadian neuroscience at Oxford University. “It helps dilate the blood vessels, increasing blood flow to the skin, where heat is radiated out. Some studies have shown this heat loss shortens the time it takes to fall asleep.”
16. Walk with weight
The ability of humans to carry weight over distances enabled us to take over the world, says Michael Easter, author of The Comfort Crisis and Scarcity Brain. It’s good for us too. “Walking with a loaded backpack or weight vest burns more calories per mile and improves strength.”
17. Rise and shine
Early exposure to sunlight plays a key role in managing circadian rhythm. Getting up earlier will make you feel sleepier sooner and an earlier bedtime will help you get more sleep, Foster says. In winter a light box or seasonal depression lamp will have the same effect.
18. Reset your pelvis
Poorly aligned pelvises are the root of so many physical niggles. The physiotherapist Luis Ribeiro suggests a reset. “Stand with feet hip-width apart, hands on hips. Tilt the pelvis forward, feeling the hip flexors engage and the lower back arch slightly. Then tilt it all the way back, rounding the lower back gently. Find the midpoint between these positions, your “neutral pelvis”. Repeating this movement helps correct postural imbalances that can strain the lumbar spine.”
19. Ignore your dreams
“Increased anxiety can be linked to more vivid dream images,” Foster says. “But it’s just the brain trying to make sense of a deeply complicated world. We forget an estimated 95 per cent of our dreams. If they were important, then why don’t we remember more?”
20. Exercise your right to disconnect
Being tethered to a work phone “isn’t just a health problem, it’s a productivity problem because you burn out”, says Cary Cooper, professor of organisational psychology and health at the Alliance Manchester Business School at Manchester University. For employers, he adds: “Don’t message your team out of hours unless the office is burning down.”
21. Take naps
There’s plenty of evidence that naps improve focus. “Keep them brief so you’re not affecting sleep at night,” recommends Colin Espie, a professor of sleep medicine at Oxford University, who suggests post-lunch naps of 20-30 minutes. Have a coffee beforehand: the caffeine will kick in as you rise.
22. Do wall squats
The goal, Ribeiro says, is to do a squat while facing a wall, with your toes and knees touching the wall throughout, with hands behind your head in a “prisoner” position, elbows out wide and torso upright. That’s not easy, but working towards the wall from a regular squat will improve posture, core stability and hip mechanics.
23. Try fewer reps
We know the value of pumping iron, but it’s easy to thrash away with low weight. “As soon as you go above about six reps and less than 80 per cent of the heaviest you can lift, you’re out of the strength-building zone,” says David Sadkin, a running coach and trainer at the Hooke health club in central London. Ask a personal trainer for advice before you adapt your routine.
24. Hit the sauna
Saunas are popping up all over Britain, often combined with cold-water dips. “Alternating between extremes of temperature can reduce blood pressure and boost our immune system,” says Dr Kath Jones, a GP and the founder of Wild-Ness Spa & Retreat at Loch Ness. If you have a heart condition, seek advice first.
25. Do clamshells
People who sit too much often have disengaged glutes (bum muscles) and lower back niggles. “Clamshells are a good way to turn glutes on,” Sadkin says. Essentially they involve lying on one’s side with bent legs and opening the knees — find a video online.
26. Run with your arms
“Pumping the arms helps counter rotation through the spine, which wastes energy and can lead to injury,” Sadkin says.
27. Use it or lose it
In a 2019 study, Barbara Sahakian, a professor of clinical neuropsychology at the University of Cambridge, found that adults playing a memory game she devised for the Peak Brain Training app performed better in cognitive tests. “Courses, clubs, reading or games also all help to keep our brains active,” she explains.
28. Talk to yourself
It’s old hat in elite sport but can work for anyone. “You counteract negative thoughts with positive statements, either in your head or out loud,” says Claire-Marie Roberts, a sports psychologist who is now performance director at Coventry City football club. Repeat: “I can do this.”
29. Get a health check
A check-up every five years after the age of 40 can be great. Private checks that use blood and urine samples to measure dozens of biomarkers for signs of trouble. “I’ve saved a few lives with them,” says Oliver Zolman, a British doctor specialising in longevity.
30. Power-walk to stay lean
As we up the intensity of walking, there’s a point at which we switch from burning fat to burning carbs. “It’s why bodybuilders power-walk to keep lean without burning muscle,” the running coach Sadkin says.
31. “Box-breathe” before sleep
Harry Jameson, a personal trainer and co-founder of the Pillar Wellbeing health club, tells his clients to “box breathe” before bed. Picturing four sides of a square, you breathe in for four seconds, hold your breath for four, exhale for four, then hold for four. “Six rounds of that is a simple way to damp down stress hormones,” he says.
32. Embrace rest days
“If you’ve done your 10k run on the Sunday and you are my client, we’re not touching the weights on a Monday,” Jameson stresses. “You will get a lot more benefit from a sauna or some breathing work.”
33. Track your hormones
“There’s so much talk about perimenopause and menopause, which is fantastic, but how do you know if this applies to you?” asks Sohère Roked, a GP and hormone specialist. She suggests that women track their cycles, even if it’s just on paper, looking for patterns in energy, mood, skin changes or bloating.
34. Meditate
“A moment to disconnect from the world helps us to reconnect with ourselves and everyone else,” says Dora Kamau, a meditation and mindfulness teacher and podcaster at the Headspace app. First-timers only need to set aside as little as three minutes. “Choose a point of focus, such as your breath, that anchors you to the present,” Kamau says. “When the mind wanders, which it will, gently return the focus to your anchor.”
35. Brush for your heart
Studies have linked poor oral health to heart disease, diabetes and dementia. “Good brushing and regular visits to the hygienist set you up for the future, just like going to the gym,” says Anshu Sood, an orthodontist at the Helix House clinic in Nottingham.
36. Learn the piano
Brain scans have revealed the positive effect of playing music on grey matter, potentially slowing cognitive decline and dementia. “I’m passionate about sharing this message, especially with adults who may mistakenly think that they are too old to experience the joys of playing music,” says Declan Cosgrove, the founder of DecPlay.com, an online piano community for older players.
37. Don’t stress over unread books
Oliver Burkeman suggests treating your to-read pile “not as a container that it’s your job to empty, but as a stream that flows past you, from which you get to pick items without feeling guilty for letting the others float by”.
38. Follow the three-to-four-hour rule
If you are able to, it might be more productive to focus intensely for half the working day rather than half-heartedly all day, Burkeman advises.
39. Just give up
“There’s a joy in giving up on something hopeless,” says Charlotte Fox Weber, a psychotherapist and the author of Tell Me What You Want. “Whether it’s a friendship that drains you, a project that’s hit a wall or a hobby that you’ve grown to resent, calling it quits frees up energy for you to invest in what’s hopeful, promising and possible.”
40. Celebrate small victories
Eating a healthy meal, getting through a tough day, going for a walk. Cheering these acts might seem pointless at first, “but it will boost your motivation and reinforce positive behaviour”, says Maya Raichoora, CEO and co-founder of Remap Mental Fitness, a company that specialises in training the mind, and the author of the upcoming book Visualise: Think, Feel, Perform Like the Top 1%. “List them on your phone and go through them if you’re feeling a bit down.”
41. Welcome discomfort
“Embracing short-term discomfort to get a long-term benefit is the key to living well,” says Michael Easter, the author of The Comfort Crisis, “whether that’s taking the stairs or being OK with a little hunger.”
42. Don’t be afraid of boredom
“Boredom is linked to improvements in creativity and insights about yourself, and it can also tame burnout and decrease stress,” Easter explains.
43. Incorporate time for self-improvement into your schedule
Add “going for a run” or “job searching” to your diary as if it were a meeting. “Plan around that, rather than the other way round,” says Roberts, the sports psychologist.
44. Be “sober curious’
Instead of just doing Dry January, recalibrate your whole relationship with booze. The “sober curious” approach treats a drink as something to be savoured, ideally less often and/or in smaller amounts. “Forty per cent of our daily behaviours are determined by habits,” says Karen Tyrell, CEO of the charity Drinkaware. “With a bit of focus, healthier ones become second nature.”
Written by: Simon Usborne
© The Times of London